engleski

Quasispecies changes detected in hypervariable region 1 of hepatitis C genome with high-resolution DNA melting analysis in treated and untreated chronic hepatitis C patients

HCV exists in an individual as pool of closely related but genetically distinct variants. Development of resistant variants can be the reason of treatment failure. Aim of this study was to determine the changes in HCV quasispecies in region susceptible for mutations. Quasispecies were detected by new method, highresolution DNA melting analysis, in hypervariable region-1 at two points: 1. forty untreated patients: at baseline and after 6 months ; 2. sixty-nine treated patients: at baseline and at the end of treatment. Second sample was collected for all untreated and for 24 treated patients (45 had ETVR). For each sample result was shown as melting curve with 4 parameters: Tm (melting temperature), H (high), W (wide) and A (area). The most common genotype was 1 in both groups (57.5% in untreated and 83.3% in treated). Obtained baseline Tm was statistically significantly correlated with genotype obtained with commercial kits (p = 0.05). No significance was found for other baseline parameters. No statistical significances have been found in Tm, H, W and A for untreated and treated patients between paired samples but medians have changed in both groups (table 1 and 2).Trend of changes differed between groups, in untreated patients W and H raised while in treated declined. Without treatment, quasispecies become more heterogeneous while therapy makes them more homogeneous, towards resistant variants. Since no significant changes have been found in Tm it might be concluded that all observed changesdeveloped between same genotype at baseline.

quasispecies changes; hypervariable region 1; hepatitis C

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